7/26: Paris to Nice

We woke at 7am, packed, checked out, and took the metro to Gare de Lyon expecting to make the 8:45am train to Nice. Having had to sprint multiple times on our honeymoon in order to make trains and flights, we figured the extra time allowed would be plenty.

We figured wrong. Poorly marked signage at the station and short-staffed ticket offices made us miss our train (by maybe five minutes), so we got tickets for the 9:45. For a mere 240€ (~$360…holy crap), we secured our six-hour train trip to Nice. We then grabbed some breakfast and waited.

The train trip was uneventful, and the views of the French countryside, while pretty, weren’t overwhelming. I’d allowed myself to believe we’d pass through vineyards, lavender fields, and picture-perfect villages on our way south, but my expectations exceeded the reality.

We arrived at Nice to overcast skies, and walked ~15 minutes to the Hotel de la Fontaine, which was just one block's walk from the beach. We checked in, dropped our luggage, and then went out in search of food and the beach.

Above: View from our window.

Our hotel was one block off the beach boardwalk, so we quickly got our bearings and found some paninis for lunch, then descended onto Nice’s rocky beach to eat.

We watched a few parasailers, then sat for a while catnapping, though the wind and mild overcast made the beach pretty cold.

Above: "BRRrrrr! I love the beach!"

The beach outing was short-lived, so we walked back to the hotel after stopping for snacks. This became our early dinner, because we both got so tired that we crashed before heading out for a proper meal. We slept over 12 hours, and apparently needed it. I reckon all the traveling is catching up to us.

Nice July 26 Album:

Nice: July 26, 2011

Location:Nice, France